Modal analysis of rigid pavement resting on two-parameter soil foundation model using finite element framework

Abstract

Purpose The purpose of this study is to numerically model the rigid pavement resting on two-parameter soil and to examine its modal parameters. Design/methodology/approach This study is carried out using a one-dimensional beam element with three rotational and three translational degrees of freedom based on the finite element method. MATLAB programming is used to perform the free vibration analysis of the rigid pavement. Findings Cyclic frequency and their corresponding mode shapes were determined. It has been investigated how cyclic frequency changes as a result of variations in the thickness, span length of pavement, shear modulus, modulus of subgrade, different boundary conditions and element discretization. Thickness of the pavement and span length has greater effect on the cyclic frequency. Maximum increase of 29.7% is found on increasing the thickness, whereas the cyclic frequency decreases by 63.49% on increasing span length of pavement. Research limitations/implications The pavement's free vibration is the sole subject of the current investigation. This study limits for the preliminary design phase of rigid pavements, where a complete three-dimensional finite element analysis is unnecessary. The current approach can be extended to future research using a different method, such as finite element grilling technique, mesh-free technique on reinforced concrete pavements or jointed concrete pavements. Originality/value The finite element approach adopted in this paper involves six degrees of freedom for each node. Furthermore, to the best of the authors’ knowledge, no prior study has done seven separate parametric investigations on the modal analysis of rigid pavement resting on two-parameter soil.